Notice of committal mention date and hand-up brief
Form 29 Notice of committal mention date and hand-up brief
Rule 57
Notice of Committal Mention date and Hand-Up Brief
(Section 110 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009)
In the Magistrates' Court of
Victoria at [venue] Court Ref.:
TO: [accused]
of [address(es)]
Informant's contact details—[insert name and contact details]
COMMITTAL MENTION DATE
You have been charged with *a criminal offence/*criminal offences. A copy of the charge-sheet is attached to this notice.
There will be a committal mention hearing in relation to *the charge/*those charges at the Magistrates' Court at [venue] on [date] at [time].
You must attend court on that date.
WHAT IS A COMMITTAL PROCEEDING?
A committal proceeding is a proceeding in the Magistrates' Court for some cases involving indictable offences. A committal proceeding has a case management function. The purposes of a committal proceeding are—
• to determine whether a charge for an offence is appropriate to be heard and determined summarily by the Magistrates' Court; and
• to determine how you propose to plead to the charge or charges against you; and
• to ensure a fair trial, if the matter proceeds to trial.
If the Court determines that a charge against you is not appropriate to be heard and determined summarily, the Court will commit you for trial in the County Court or the Supreme Court in relation to the charge.
Depending on the nature of the case and of the witnesses, a committal hearing may be held and you may be able to ask the Court's permission for you or your lawyer to cross-examine some or all of the witnesses about their statements.
DISCUSSION OF ISSUES WITH THE PROSECUTOR
At least 7 days before the committal mention date you or your lawyer must discuss your case with the prosecutor. (If you or your lawyer have not already been notified of the prosecutor's contact details, you or your lawyer should be notified of those details no later than 14 days before the committal mention date.)
The purpose of the discussion is to find out matters including—
whether you propose to plead guilty or not guilty;
where applicable, whether you will be asking to cross-examine any of the witnesses whose statements are contained in the hand-up brief of evidence, and whether the prosecutor opposes that cross-examination;
whether you want to inspect any things that are listed in the hand‑up brief of evidence, and whether the informant objects to that inspection;
whether you will be electing to stand trial in the County Court or the Supreme Court;
if a charge may be heard and determined summarily, whether you will be applying to the Court to have the charge tried by a magistrate in the Magistrates' Court rather than by a judge and jury in the County Court or Supreme Court.
THE COMMITTAL MENTION HEARING
A committal mention hearing is one of the stages of a committal proceeding. At a committal mention hearing the Magistrates' Court may do any of the following—
determine the committal proceeding and commit you for trial in the County Court or the Supreme Court in relation to the charge against you;
offer a summary hearing or determine an application for the charge to be heard and determined summarily in the Magistrates' Court;
hear and determine an application for leave to cross-examine a witness;
fix a date for a committal hearing;
hear and determine any objection to disclosure of material;
fix another date for a committal mention hearing;
hold a committal case conference;
make any other order or give any direction that the Magistrates' Court considers appropriate.
THIS IS AN IMPORTANT DOCUMENT. DO NOT IGNORE IT.
If you do not have a lawyer, you should contact a legal practitioner, Victoria Legal Aid as soon as possible. If you are eligible, you have a right to legal aid under the Legal Aid Act 1978.
[telephone number for Law Institute of Victoria Referral Service—insert details]
[address and telephone number for Victoria Legal Aid—insert details]
[address and telephone number of registrar of Magistrates' Court—insert details]
If you come to the committal mention hearing without a lawyer the Court will not delay the hearing to enable you to get a lawyer unless you have already made reasonable efforts to get a lawyer.
AFFIDAVIT OF SERVICE
I [full name]
of [address]
a police officer in the State of Victoria *make oath and say/*affirm that I served on the accused a hand-up brief containing this notice and the enclosures referred to in this notice by delivering a true copy to the accused personally at [address] on [day of week] [date] at [time].
The contents of this affidavit are true and correct and I make it knowing that a person making a false affidavit may be prosecuted for the offence of perjury.
*Sworn/*affirmed at [place]
in the State of Victoria
on [date] [time]
Before
[name and address in legible writing, typing or stamp below signature]
*a person authorised under section 19(1) of the Oaths and Affirmations Act 2018 to take an affidavit.
DECLARATION OF SERVICE
I [full name]
of [address]
a police officer in the State of Victoria declare that I served on the accused a hand-up brief containing this notice and the enclosures referred to in this notice by delivering a true copy to the accused personally at [address] on [day of week] [date] at [time].
I declare that the contents of this statutory declaration are true and correct and I make it knowing that a person making a statutory declaration that I know to be untrue is an offence.
*Declared at [place]
in the State of Victoria
on [date] [time]
Before
[name and address in legible writing, typing or stamp below signature]
*a person authorised under section 30(2) of the Oaths and Affirmations Act 2018 to witness the signing of a statutory declaration.
*Delete if not applicable
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